I have been playing guitar for 35 years, and ukulele for about 8 years, and thought it was time for me to pick up one more instrument that I could be not-quite-proficient at. Read complete review

I have been playing guitar for 35 years, and ukulele for about 8 years, and thought it was time for me to pick up one more instrument that I could be not-quite-proficient at. The lap steel intrigued me because of the size and obvious strength of an instrument that is constructed mainly out of a slab of wood. This would be my first electric instrument. I ordered it along with a Fender Mustang amp and this thing is a hoot to play. Open tuning so even if you have no idea what a stringed instrument does you can get some sounds out of it right away. Tone is solid, volume and tone control are not scratchy at all and have even progression throughout their travel. With the Mustang amp plugged in it can pull off fiery blues, or soft ballads and back up corny country if your little heart desires. I ordered a headphone amp and with that plugged in this thing is completely portable. I feel much better about hauling it to the park, etc...and having it sit in my car than any acoustic toy. Slab of wood, remember? All-in-all a fun and practical instrument at a good price. the only gripe is that the plastic fretboard was not glued down at about the 5th fret area. A dab of glue and all was good. I know that the plastic board is not super cool, but you never touch the darned thing (it is reference for fret location only) so it is somewhat of a non-issue in my world.

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i bought one of these froma music store in my town & when i played it @ home, the notes were not in the right places. The harmonics were way off, by the...Read complete review

i bought one of these froma music store in my town & when i played it @ home, the notes were not in the right places. The harmonics were way off, by the 24th fret, the actual note was a 1.5 frets behind. Music store called Gretsch, they said it was "the nature of the beast", and its common with lap steel. I talked to someone else and they said that's absolutely NOT right. so i took it back and got a chandler lap steel. avoid if possible, the sound is dull too

I have been playing guitar for 35 years, and ukulele for about 8 years, and thought it was time for me to pick up one more instrument that I could be not-quite-proficient at. The lap steel intrigued me because of the size and obvious strength of an instrument that is constructed mainly out of a slab of wood. This would be my first electric instrument. I ordered it along with a Fender Mustang amp and this thing is a hoot to play. Open tuning so even if you have no idea what a stringed instrument does you can get some sounds out of it right away. Tone is solid, volume and tone control are not scratchy at all and have even progression throughout their travel. With the Mustang amp plugged in it can pull off fiery blues, or soft ballads and back up corny country if your little heart desires. I ordered a headphone amp and with that plugged in this thing is completely portable. I feel much better about hauling it to the park, etc...and having it sit in my car than any acoustic toy. Slab of wood, remember? All-in-all a fun and practical instrument at a good price. the only gripe is that the plastic fretboard was not glued down at about the 5th fret area. A dab of glue and all was good. I know that the plastic board is not super cool, but you never touch the darned thing (it is reference for fret location only) so it is somewhat of a non-issue in my world.

I've been reading some of the comments about this lap steel. Since I own two Gretsch's & plan to buy another I feel qualified to make a few comments for those who have issues. The scale of a lap steel is half a regular guitar or resonator. It takes a lot of practice to get the muscle memory to hit the frets at the right spot, I think this a an issue many believe is an intonation problem (the fret marker problem I just don't get... they are permanently marked & mine seem to go completely through the fretboard). Another thought is tuning choice, the Gretsch comes with standard open G "slack tuning" (GBDGBD). Changing to a slack tuned open G "topo patch" (DGDGBD) can be done without changing strings. Most other tuning possibilities (over 4000) require consulting manufacturers string charts (diameter & tension) to accomplish. I would recommend anyone thinking about a lap steel to buy a Golden Gate Resonator Guitar Extension Nut for about ten bucks, put it on their guitar & see how familiar it feels. If you can't hit your notes & compensate for intonation stick with your guitar or a resonator but don't try a lap steel,(BTW you can spring for a few thou. for a nice Asher that's scaled very much like your guitar). If I didn't make my point, in my opinion the Gretsch is like butter to play, holds up very well to regular gigging & is priced exceptionally low for what you get. Happy sliding

I have been wanting to try one of these Gretsch Eletromatics, and it's almost near perfect for me, even though I wasn't expecting much from it before I gave it a tryout. I've found that the string spacing is a little too close together for me and I had a hard time adjusting my fingerpick style to it. I was skeptical about the tuners, but they are rock solid, and unique looking, too. I prefer the tuning keys on top, but not a deal breaker. I do like that the volume/tone knobs are on the same side, as well as the output jack away from me. The single coil pickup is fantastic! Lots of bite and no noise. I think the price is a little steep, so I got mine used for a hundo less than street price. I am very pleased with it overall.

I have read all the posted reviews here and elsewhere and decided that I would go out on a limb and buy myself the Gretsch Electromatic. I'm glad I did. It plays well and sounds great. It made its debut at a blues jam and received much positive feedback. It is carved from a lovely block of wood and finished in a glossy sunburst finish. The sustain is endless and smooth. It has a fairly long scale length. Pickup response is strong and even across the range. I like the GHS flat wound G tuning strings but I haven't bothered changing to them yet. The OE strings are at least adequate. I have one beef, and it's one I have with most, but not all guitars meant to be played lying flat (lap steel, square neck resonators). I think it makes sense to have the tuner buttons facing up. I removed the hand rest. That is just a personal issue. I like to use my right hand for damping the strings. The hand rest prevented that. I suppose that I would feel differently if I were playing C&W or Western Swing, but I'm playing Blues.I'm not sure about the fret board. I'm not certain that it is merely screened on. Upon close inspection, it appears to me to be at least routed and filled or maybe some kind of inlay. The fact is that the frets are not merely on the surface. They clearly go below the surface. I'm not sure how one would wear off the fret markings on a lap steel. The strings are nowhere near the fret board. Maybe a capo. I have no problem with the intonation. With the strings so high off the fret board and the steel having a substantial diameter, I'm not sure how you could determine whether the intonation was off. The fret markings are a rough guide. The rest is done with your ears. That said, I see no inaccuracies in my fret board.This instrument is a gas! It is so much fun to play and apparently, according to those my audience, it is also fun to listen to.

OK I'm writing another review for this. Its redeeming factor is still the paint job and design, shape what ever you call it.The scratching noise with the knobs seemed to go away with use. The pickup is clean and clear. The best sound I've got out of it is in a Fender 65 Deluxe amp. Now we are talking lap steel here. The stings are way too light that come on it. Try some GHS Open G semi flat nickels. The tuners are too coarse. Unless you like that. Myself I put Grover 18:1 Sta-Tites on everything if its worth keeping. The fret board is awful as stated by others. It just is not right for such a nice looking guitar. It will get replaced or sanded and redone correctly. For looks and sound it is well worth the money. I've played it in a PA system, acoustic amp, and a small 5 watt tube amp all of which are OK. But in the 65 Deluxe yo baby. May as well get a nice tube amp to go with it.

Iv'e owned mine for about 4 months and love it!It gets great sounds from the single coil pickup, and looks great! Let me be clear, I have no problems with tuning, intonation, the paint on the fret board, or the tuners, This guitar is a good buy and I'd get it again. It really has those classic country, Hawiian, and blues tones in it. Iv'e played 6 string electric for over 36yrs, and this is my first lap steel. I'm having a lot of fun learning thus instrument. It is a nothch or two above a "entry level" lap steel in my opinion.

I've owned my Gretch lap steel for not quite a year now, and absolutely love it. Endless sustain, incredible growl. (I do more blues/country/rock than any hawaiian style music...it rips, and with effects, it's psychadelic. Highly recommended for all levels of playing...change the strings to stainless flat wound and wow! By the way, I never played slide before and am now performing with pride with my Gretsch

All the reviews for this instrument have been bad so far, but I have to disagree with them. I own this guitar and think it is great. The tuners are solid, the painted "frets" provide correct intonation if you play correctly, and I have not noticed any paint coming off. In my experience, the electromatic is a great instrument that gives a lot of value for the price.

This a reissue of a USA 1940's model, however this reissue is Korean-made, and it is relatively low-priced.It plays nice, but the controls are not noiseless providing a little crisp while turning them. However, that "hawaiian" lap steel sound is there, maybe is not the best sound ever, but it is very nice! However what I found quite misleading and unacceptable was the white plastic fingerboard which has the frets painted in a kind of black enamel that goes off easily just by scratching with your finger nails. I had mine scratched and the frets were starting to disappear, so I had to completely redraw the fingerboard with a silver permanent-ink drawer. It is a pity that these kind of things can happen! Gretsch should provide a better quality material for the fingerboard, or at least provide it as a replacement (i.e. an aluminium fingerboard.This is the only complaint I have about it. Otherwise, is just great to play an instrument like this, you can play those Ry Cooder lines in Paris - Texas; it just sounds amazing!!

i bought one of these froma music store in my town & when i played it @ home, the notes were not in the right places. The harmonics were way off, by the 24th fret, the actual note was a 1.5 frets behind. Music store called Gretsch, they said it was "the nature of the beast", and its common with lap steel. I talked to someone else and they said that's absolutely NOT right. so i took it back and got a chandler lap steel. avoid if possible, the sound is dull too